The Week in the Rearview Mirror

Residents who live near fracking sites have been concerned about the quality of their water supplies after the procedure takes place. Now, adjacent to the biggest shale field discovered in Texas, the Eagle Ford formation, well owners are anxious about the very existence of a water supply. Those who live nearby the fracking sites report that their wells and filters fill up with sand, an element used in the drilling process, every few days. And since fracking requires millions of gallons of water, residents near Eagle Ford worry that without any rainfall, their underground supplies will be sucked dry.

Heated debate between congressional candidates Lloyd Doggett and Joaquin Castro may soon become moot, as the redistricting maps that spurred on a contest between them are under review in court and subject to being redrawn. Doggett is the current holder of the District 25 seat but chose to run in the recently drawn District 35 which runs from Austin to San Antonio. The maps, which have been disputed by minority groups, have yet to be finalized. Proposed maps would allow Doggett and Castro to run in separate districts, although the San Antonio based panel of judges has given no indication that it would accept the plaintiffs maps.

Another effect of this year’s record drought is a blooming of algae reported to be the worst to hit the Gulf Coast in over ten years. Called a red tide, the algae thrive in warm, salty water. The lack of rainfall this year made conditions ripe for the phenomenon, which is being blamed for killing fish and affecting the Texas coast from Galveston to South Padre.

The fiscal year that ended in September saw record deportations of immigrants, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Director John Morton. With numbers reaching nearly 400,000, the agency reported that over half the number of individuals deported had been convicted of a felony or misdemeanor. Authorities also reported that two-thirds of the deportees had recently crossed the border or were repeated crossers.

Surprising some onlookers, the superintendent of the McAllen ISD announced a program that will put an iPad in the hands of every student in his district. James Ponce made the announcement to a packed house in a school library, detailing the rollout of the program. The first phase is set to begin next year with the purchase of more than 5000 iPads and 425 iPod touches. Eventually, the district expects to provide each of its 25,000 students with a device, giving Internet access to kids who might not currently have it.

Controversy over content in a new State of the Bay report has left its publication in doubt. Researchers have been outspoken in their criticism of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s decision to modify a scientific report written on sea level rise by a Rice University oceanographer. John Anderson, who was commissioned by the Houston Advanced Research Center to provide the analysis, was critical of the commission’s attempt to edit his report and agreed to have the chapter removed from the report. But two of the editors from the center say the report will be incomplete and insufficient for residents and authorities in planning for the future of Galveston Bay.

The first non-engineer appointed to head the Texas Department of Transportation was denied a salary higher than the statutory maximum. Gov. Rick Perry rejected the written request from the Transportation Commission to allow the new executive director, Phil Wilson, to receive $381,000 in compensation, nearly double what his predecessor made. The Transportation Commission’s request comes on the heels of a salary study of comparable private sector jobs. But Perry stressed the need to conform to the legislated maximum for the job-$292,500, in light of the state’s current fiscal and budget situation.

When Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price opened her latest bank statement, she got a surprise. More than $900 had been debited from the campaign account fraudulently with a fake debit card and checks. The mayor has filed a report with police and Wal-Mart has been asked for surveillance footage, since the debit card was used at two of their stores.